Mbatia: PM probe into Form 4 exam flop pointless, won’t offer any fresh insights

Dar es Salaam. The National Convention for Construction and Reform–Mageuzi (NCCR–Mageuzi) has expressed doubt about the team appointed to investigate mass failures in last year’s national Form Four examinations, saying it has nothing new.

Prime Minister Mizengo Pinda on Saturday unveiled a 15-member committee tasked with getting to the bottom of the fiasco.

The PM also tasked the team to find a lasting solution to the alarming decline in the quality of education and poor examination performance from 2010 to date.

But NCCR-Mageuzi argues that the committee may not come up with anything new since a similar team was formed following mass failures in the 2010 Form Four national examinations. The committee submitted its findings in June 2011, but its recommendations have not been made public.

NCCR-Mageuzi chairman James Mbatia said in Dar es Salaam yesterday that the government was aware of the causes of poor examination performance, adding that it was a waste of money to appoint committee to investigate “the obvious”.

“Reasons for such poor performance were revealed by a similar team in 2011, and submitted to the government for further action. Do we still need to spend a lot of money doing what had been done in the past?” he asked.

Mr Mbatia, who is also a Nominated MP, said it would be prudent to form a commission to look at the entire education sector, adding that poor results were an outcome of various factors.

For such a team to work efficiently, he said, it should comprise only five members who are current classroom teachers as they understand the problem on the ground.

Mr Mbatia also revealed that he turned down his appointment to the probe team, citing conflict of interest. He said what was being probed was essentially what he wanted to be addressed when he moved a private motion in Parliament last month.

The lawmaker said he could investigate what he had researched for close to 15 years and was sure what he was saying.

“I cannot accept to be part of a government committee...it is ethically wrong since I have declared a dispute with the government” he added.

The commission will be chaired by the executive secretary of the Tanzania Commission for Universities (TCU), Prof Sifuni Mchome.

Other members of the team, which starts work immediately, include Special Seats MP Bernadetha Mushashu, who will be vice chairman, and Kibiti MP Abdul Marombwa.